Brothers Struck By Car, 1 Dead, Suspect Driver Sought

GAITHERSBURG, Md. (WUSA) -- One brother is dead and another injured after being struck by a car in Gaithersburg, Md. on Wednesday morning.

The incident is being investigated as a homicide, police confirmed.

Montgomery County and Gaithersburg Police responded to W. Diamond Avenue after receiving a report of a pedestrian struck in the area around 1:17 Wednesday morning.

Officers arrived on scene to find a deceased man near The Avalon Boys School in the 200 block of W. Diamond Avenue. A man who survived the collision, the brother of the man who was killed,was found a short distance away. He was treated at a local hospital for non-life-threatening injuries.

The age of the surviving brother, initially reported as 54, has been corrected to 34 by police, who confirm the man will turn 35 shortly. He told police that he and his brother were given a ride by people in a black Honda Civic earlier in the morning. The two brothers were eventually dropped off near the Gaitherstown Plaza at Route 355 and Chestnut Street.

The brother said they were walking west on W. Diamond Avenue when they were hit by a black Honda Civic, which is believed to be the same vehicle they had been riding in minutes earlier.

Police confirmed that the Honda used in the crime was found a short time later in the Gaitherstown Shopping Center on Chestnut Street at Route 355. The vehicle was found parked and abandoned near a Carquest Auto Parts store with damage consistent with a pedestrian collision. So far, police have not released any information on the vehicle's owner.

W. Diamond Avenue was blocked between Perry Parkway and Muddy Branch Road, along with the intersections of W. Diamond and Chestnut St. and W. Diamond and Meem Avenue.

The AvalonBoys School was closed Wednesday due to the ongoing investigation near the facility.

Police are asking anyone with information related to this homicide to call 240-773-5070 orl Crime Solvers at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477)